"Alright, just go into the office and talk to the lady at the front desk, she will help you" Sophie said with a smile on her face as the bell rang. "I'll see you later" she walked away with a smile and I smiled weakly back. I had so many questions. What if they found out about me? What if Nate was like me? Why didn't he shift either, his eyes were normal, weren't they? Why didn't Nate smell like a werewolf like I did?

I took a deep breathe and went into the office. I told the woman in the office, Sherry, my name and she pulled up my file and my classes. She printed out my schedule and handed it to me as well as a stack of books.

"Your locker and combination are on the paper, classes have started, but take your time to figure it out. Here is a map and an excuse for class." she said kindly.

"Thank you" I whispered. I headed out the door and looked at my locker number. 563. I was looking down at the map as I turned a right corner and ran straight into an open locker door. I fell backwards and landed on the floor, my books scattered every where.

"I am so...sorry..." I looked up to see the horrified face of Nate Searing.

"Ummm, its ok. I am just a klutz. That's my fault for not watching where I was going" I mumbled, utterly embarrassed. He quickly reached down and held his hand out to me. I took his warm hand and he lifted me half way off the floor without breaking a sweat. He put his other hand behind my waist and pulled me into a standing position. I stared into his eyes for a second and he looked at my face quickly, then he released me just as quickly.

"Uhhh, your face looks ok, you might have a small bump. I'm so sorry" he said quickly then bent down and started picking up my books. I just stared at him for a second then I bent down and started helping him.

"Thank you for picking me and my books up" I said and smiled at him warmly. He stopped moving and looked at me, then stood up abruptly. "Which locker is yours?"

"563" I turned around and put the combination into my locker, opening it so he could put my books in the locker. He gently sat the books, one by one, into the locker. He was wearing a blue button down shirt with the sleeves rolled up and blue jeans. And man, he looked good in them. With each book he picked up, his forearms flexed. It was nice to stand next to a guy that made me feel normal. He finished putting the books he held into the locker, then took the two books I was holding and put them in there as well. He then ran his hand through his hair nervously.

"I'm really sorry" he said again. His voice was like velvet, light and smooth.

"It's ok, Nate. It was my fault" when I said his name, his head snapped up to my face.

"You know my name?" he asked incredulously.

"Sophie Rayes told me your name" a hurt expression flitted across his face before he looked down and then back up to me.

"So she told you about me then?"

"Yes"

"Then you know you shouldn't be talking to me" he said sadly.

"I think I'm going to talk to who I want and make my own opinions" I said with a smile. This guy was the only person I had ever met like me. I wasn't going to let him go.

He stared at me. Confused for a second, and then slowly and sadly smiled. I shut my locker and pulled out my map.

"I have no idea where I am going and I need help. Will you help me out?" I asked nicely. He hesitantly nodded. He took my proffered schedule and read over it carefully.

"We have the exact same schedule. That's crazy" he stated breathlessly. That's not the only thing that's crazy, I thought. "Well our first period is a free period. That's why I take my time wondering. I spend a lot of time in the Library too. Then we go to Art, basically a blow off class. Third period is Calculus, we have a good teacher and he expects perfection. AP Biology during the fourth period, and athletics fifth period before lunch. After lunch is English, we have an awful teacher, just saying. After that is German and finally computer class. You're taking all AP courses, not many people do that. I mean, I do, because I have a lot of free time, but I am sure you won't." It seems like nervous rambling is a common thing around this town, but when Nate did it, it was adorable. I could watch him do speak all day.

"Why wouldn't I?" I asked.

"Because you're...normal, and pretty, and you are friends with Sophie and the other nice guys" he said slowly with a blush.

"Well, I have actually already taken most of these classes. I've been home schooled all my life. I'm...ahead of everyone but it would be nice to feel normal. And...well sorry for saying this, but it doesn't seem like Sophie and the others are very nice" I told him

"Oh, that makes sense. And yeah, they are. They may not talk to me because I'm a freak, but they've never thrown anything on me or called me names. They don't make fun of me at all actually. They just avoid me. You saw Sophie, she nodded at me. Most people would have mocked me or belittled me" he said. I couldn't help but to stop walking and stare at him aghast.
"Look, I am a freak. Alpha Phillip, the Alpha before Alex, told the pack that I should be shunned because I couldn't shift. When Alpha Phillip died last year, Alex took over. He just never changed it. I know Alpha Alex, we're in the same grade. He hung out with them too. He is a lot more...rough around the edges...but he was never mean either. He'll tell them to leave me be eventually. Until then, I just hit people in football and keep my head down" he explained calmly.

"Well, you and I are going to be friends and I will tell Sophie and Jason that to their faces" it was his turn to stare at me.

"Why would you do that?" he asked.

I looked at him a long while, and then asked, "If I tell you, you can't tell anyone". He nodded and I told him. I told him everything.






Thank you so much for reading! Terri's Grandma on the side! Vote and comment please!